ambassador

President Barack Obama followed tradition at the opening session of the U.N. General Assembly this week by engaging in perhaps the most intense diplomacy this year, juggling everything from the Syria crisis to development aid. At his side were mainly politically appointed aides, including National Security Adviser Susan Rice, her deputy Benjamin Rhodes, and U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power. But most of the people working behind the scenes to make it all happen are career diplomats, also known as Foreign Service officers — a group of about 8,000 Americans who, along with about 5,000 technical staff, serve in 275 embassies, consulates, and other missions around the world.

Over the years, the Obama White House has been criticized as being too controlling on foreign policy, running an overly tight ship, and keeping these professionals at the State Department — the Foreign Service’s home agency in Washington — at arm’s length when it comes to the issues the administration most cares about. Critics cite the Iran nuclear negotiations and the secret talks with Cuba as recent examples of diplomacy where more professionals could have been included at earlier stages. Does that suggest a lack of trust?…

On this week’s episode of Conversations with Nicholas Kralev, the Australian ambassador to Washington, Kim Beazley, talks about his country’s “massive burden-sharing” in the diplomacy and security of the Asia-Pacific.

On this week’s episode of Conversations with Nicholas Kralev, Philip Reeker, former ambassador to Macedonia and incoming consul-general in Milan, talks about the wide variety of tasks professional diplomats perform, and creating a successful Foreign Service career.

On this week’s episode of Conversations with Nicholas Kralev, we discuss the role career diplomats play in making U.S. foreign policy, and why presidents tend to distrust the Foreign Service, with James Jeffrey, former ambassador to Iraq and Turkey, and Avis Bohlen, former assistant secretary of state for arms control.

On this week’s episode of “Conversations with Nicholas Kralev,” the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, Stephen Beecroft, talks about the challenges for U.S. diplomacy in the country amid continuing violence and political dysfunction.

On this week’s episode of “Conversations with Nicholas Kralev,” the German ambassador to the United States, Peter Ammon, talks about his country’s diplomatic priorities, rebuilding trust with Washington following the NSA spying revelations, and the West’s relationship with Russia.

On this week’s episode of “Conversations with Nicholas Kralev,” former Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte talks about how diplomacy and intelligence influence each other, the frequent tension between them, whether U.S. embassies are fronts for the CIA, and the “WMD fiasco” in Iraq.

On this week’s episode of “Conversations with Nicholas Kralev,” the Indian ambassador to Washington, Nirupama Rao, talks about her country’s diplomatic power, its multifaceted relationship with the United States, and how their cooperation benefits the people in both countries.

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns talks about how diplomacy has changed since 9/11, and why increasing the number of high-level political positions at the State Department has reduced accountability among lower-level employees.

On this week’s episode of “Conversations with Nicholas Kralev,” we conclude our conversation with Ambassador Thomas Pickering, former undersecretary of state for political affairs, about U.S. diplomacy in the 21st century, the Foreign Service and the increasing number of political appointees at the State Department, in positions previously help by career diplomats.